


Blue Christmas

by NephilimEQ



Series: Christmas Medley [3]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Christmas gift, First Kiss, Gay Love, Humor, I wrote all these stories in a day and a half, Love Confessions, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, cute couple fighting, so many gay ships, they are so totally married
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 05:10:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13139745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NephilimEQ/pseuds/NephilimEQ
Summary: Steve stared out the window onto the linai at around five in the evening on Christmas Eve, trying (and failing) to not feel bad for himself. He couldn’t help it. Danny had hit snow at O’Hare on his way home, so all flights were grounded, and he wouldn’t make it back home until the day after Christmas. He still had friends to celebrate with, and he’d told Danny that he would make sure Grace and Charlie had an amazing time, but…it just wasn’t the same.





	Blue Christmas

 

**Blue Christmas **

Steve stared out the window onto the linai at around five in the evening on Christmas Eve, trying (and failing) to not feel bad for himself. He couldn’t help it. Danny had hit snow at O’Hare on his way home, so all flights were grounded, and he wouldn’t make it back home until the day after Christmas. He still had friends to celebrate with, and he’d told Danny that he would make sure Grace and Charlie had an amazing time, but…it just wasn’t the same.

He pulled himself out of his musings at hearing a thump in the other room.

“Charlie!” he heard a familiar voice complain. “You have to spread the ornaments all around the tree! You can’t put them all in one place!”

“Why?”

“Because that’s not how it’s supposed to be done, that’s why!”

Grace. She was turning more into her father every day. Steve couldn’t imagine a life without any of them in it, any more. They were his ohana, his family. He smiled and walked back into the living room and tried not to laugh at seeing Grace grab the box of ornaments, saying, “Look, I’ll just do it myself. Danno taught me how to do this, so you’re just gonna have to watch and learn, little brother.”

Yep. More like her dad every day.

He lingered in the doorway, shoulder against the doorframe, and watched them as they put the rest of the ornaments and other decorations on the tree. Grace finally looked up and saw him.

“Uncle Steve!” She jumped up and came over to him. “When is Danno gonna be home?”

He tried to keep his face neutral and his tone light, but he could see it in her eyes that she knew he wouldn’t be home when he said, “Soon, sweetie. I’m sure,” and then she turned and walked back over to Charlie, distracting him by asking him to come help her make cookies in the kitchen.

Dammit.

He thought about joining them, but then decided against it, and instead headed for the back linai, hoping to find some calm and reassurance before coming back in to spend Christmas Eve with the kids. He stood out there for a long time, trying to deal with the empty feeling that was gnawing at him from the inside. It wasn’t just that his friend wasn’t going to be there. To him, Danny was more than a friend; so much more. After the first month of working with him, he’d known something was different. After a year, Steve knew that he was in love with the irascible Jersey cop, but he knew better than to say anything about it.

As he stood there, he heard the faint strains of Elvis from inside the house. Blue Christmas. Of course. Why would it be any other song? Letting out a frustrated sigh, he dragged himself back inside…and nearly bust out laughing at the sight in front of him, almost forgetting just how depressed he actually was.

Gracie was dancing with Charlie in the middle of the kitchen to Steve’s Elvis Christmas album, both of them barefoot with a dusting of flour on both of them.

Charlie was missing steps every other step, but Grace, the marvelous girl that she was, was being an amazing big sister and telling him that it was okay, and helping him with every single part of it.

Steve found himself, once again, watching from a doorway as the Williams kids slowly turned away his holiday blues with their crazy antics. After a few minutes, his phone buzzed in his back pocket, and he reluctantly pulled it out to see who was calling.

_Danny._

“Hello? Danny, is that you?” he asked, not quite believing the caller I.D.

 _“Yeah, it’s me, dumbass,”_ snapped back a familiar voice. _“Look, I’m sorry for everything, and that I’m not there, but I swear to you, and to Charlie and Gracie, that I will be there as_ soon _as I can. Can you tell them that for me, Steve?”_

“Uh, yeah, or you could tell them yourself. They’re right here,” the marine said, moving inside the doorway, but Danny interrupted him with, _“No, no, no, don’t put them on the phone! Charlie will start asking_ when _I’m coming home, which I don’t have an answer to, yet, so I’d have to lie, which I don’t wanna do, it’s bad enough about the whole Santa thing, you know? And Gracie will do that thing her mother does so well and guilt me with her ‘disappointed’ tone, and I’m not puttin’ up with that. Just know that I’m working on getting home and that’s all that matters. Oh, and don’t let that girl touch the baking flour, she’s a menace…”_

“Uh, might be a little bit late on that one,” Steve retorted, unable to keep from grinning, turning away from the kitchen so he could keep their conversation private.

_“Oh god, don’t tell me it’s cookies.”_

“Chocolate chip, it looks like.”

 _“Charlie will be up all night on a sugar high,”_ groaned Danny over the phone, and Steve quickly said, “You know they’ve scientifically disproven the whole ‘sugar-high’ theory about kids, right, Danny? It’s actually just a psychological response to outside influences. I’m sure it’s just excitement over Christmas and presents and stuff. I’ll make sure they get to bed before eleven. The presents are wrapped, and I’ll slip them under the tree around three, and make sure their stockings are full. I mean, what could go--”

 _“Whoa, whoa there, McGarrett. Please don’t jinx it by saying what I_ know _you were just about to say. Do_ not _be that person, especially not on Christmas. The Williams’ family is infamous for having disasters on this holiday anytime someone says anything that pertains to things going well. Assume the worst, only_ speak _the worst…and the best will come to you on its’ own.”_

Steve scoffed.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

_“Nope. Dead serious. Would you like me to list previous nightmares on Williams’ family Christmases?”_

“Danny, I don’t think that’s--”

_“December 25 th, 1984. I am eight years old, and my mother tells us she has a big surprise for us. She pulls out a large box and opens it, only to reveal the dead rabbit lying inside a box that she forgot to poke airholes in. December 24th, 1992: sixteen years old and my dad lets me take the car out for a solo drive as an early Christmas present. Because of him, I end up getting pulled over and spending the night in the county jail because my father decided to bust open one of the buds in his six pack to get started before Christmas dinner out in the car alone before I left the house. I never made it to Christmas dinner. December 25th, 1994, my cousin visits with her boyfriend, who she met while stripping--”_

“Whoa, let me stop you right there, Danno. I get it. No jinxing Christmas. My lips are sealed, locked, every word you can think of,” he said, recognizing the usual signs of a Danny Williams mental breakdown, even from over the phone. The tone was un-mistakeable.

He then noticed an odd sound.

“Hey, what’s that sound, Danny?” It sounded like…a boarding call? But no, that wasn’t possible. He was stuck at O’Hare and all the planes were grounded. Then why was there…?

_“Gotta go, Steve. Give them my love.”_

He hung up.

Even a bit more annoyed than before, he glared at his phone before putting it back in his pocket and then turned back to the kids, who were no longer baking in any way, trying to get as much flour and dough onto each other as was possible. Yes, he outwardly groaned, but he inwardly grinned. Danny had great kids.

“Hey, you two,” he said, walking in and putting a hand on both of their heads. “How about you two go get cleaned up, into your pj’s, and I’ll clean up the mess in here? Sound like a deal?”

Charlie smiled up at him, one tooth missing.

“Sure, Uncle Steve.”

Gracie nodded, and they both went down the hall to their shared bathroom, and he soon heard the sound of the water running. He shook his head and cleaned up the counter, the floor, and the cabinets, which had not only flour on them, but small streaks of chocolate, as well. He glanced in the oven as he cleaned up and his lips twisted up in approval as he saw the cookies baking. They looked good.

Too bad they’d all be gone by the time Danny got home.

Great. Now he’d gone and ruined his good mood all over again. Letting out a sigh, he stood back up and threw the rag into the sink. He’d finish the rest of the cleanup later. Just in time, too, as they both came back down the hallway. Impulsively, Steve leaned down and swept Charlie up into his arms. He was almost too big to do that anymore, but he didn’t care.

“So, whaddaya guys wanna watch?”

Ten minutes later the three of them sat on the couch, one large bowl of popcorn between them, sitting on Steve’s lap, who sat in the middle, while they watched A Charlie Brown Christmas and A Muppet Christmas Carol. As the last movie ended, both of them had their heads resting solidly on his shoulders, fast asleep. It was only eight-thirty.

Having to be creative, he got the empty bowl to the floor with his legs and then managed to gently nudge Gracie awake just enough for her to walk herself back to her room and her bed. Charlie, on the other hand, he carried all the way back to his racecar-themed room. As he settled him under the covers, the little boy suddenly came to in a sleepy, disoriented moment, and slurred, “Love you, daddy Steve,” and his heart clenched. He’d never heard him say anything like _that_ before.

He backed out quietly and moved towards the presents in his bedroom. No point in waiting until later, considering how exhausted they were.

Steve tucked the brightly wrapped boxes and bags under the tree, which was still lit up. As soon as he was done, he took a step back, admired it, and then collapsed on the couch, turning on Die Hard, keeping the volume down to practically nothing, pouring himself some of the not-so-kid-friendly eggnog. The last thing he remembered seeing was Hans Gruber falling off the Nakatomi building and he was out.

\--

He woke up several hours later, disoriented. He hadn’t meant to fall sleep on the couch. He glanced at his watch. It was only five-thirty in the morning. But why was he awake? He then realized his phone was vibrating in his pocket; most likely the reason he’d woken up. He groggily pulled it out and pressed the green icon, not even bothering to see who it was. Whoever it was, he was murdering them. It was six in the morning. On Christmas. He was murdering them and dumping their body in the ocean.

“Hello?”

 _“You freakin’ paranoid army man!”_ yelled a familiar voice in his ear. _“Quit moving the damn hide-a-key all the damn time and just let me in already!”_

He blinked a few times, sat up on the couch and rested his elbows on his knees. He carefully put his head in his hands, his temples violently throbbing (the after effects of the eggnog, he was certain), and then confusedly replied, “Danny? What the hell are you talking about? You’re in O’Hare.”

His head shot up at the sound of tapping on the back door.

It was Danny.

What the…? How the hell had he gotten home? Not that he was complaining, but he had some serious answers to give him, as well as to Grace and Charlie. He put his phone down, accidentally knocking over the empty eggnog container. Swallowing back the bile that surged in the back of his throat as he made his way to his feet, he made it to the door and unlocked it, sliding it open.

“Danny?”

The man in question stood in front of him and waved a hand in front of Steve’s face and coughed, “Well, _some_ one got into the eggnog last night,” and then carefully shoved past him into the house, hefting his suitcase after him, while Steve continued to be confused.

“Danny…what’re you doing back? You were stuck in Chicago.”

“I _was_ stuck in Chicago,” he quipped back. “When I found out I would be missing Christmas with my children and partner, I got the first bus ticket to St. Louis International I could find and bought my plane ticket on the way there, and then took a one-stop trip back home so that I could actually be a _decent_ father and _be_ here on the _one_ Christmas where my ex is kind enough to let me have _both_ of them with me. Now, where’s the damn coffee?” he brusquely asked. “I’m running on soda, and it can only do so much besides make me wanna pee every thirty minutes. I need coffee and, apparently, so do you.”

And with that, he turned and headed for the kitchen, but before he could think about what he was doing, Steve had reached out and grabbed his wrist and pulled him into him, gripping him in a tight hug.

They stood there for a minute, and Danny patted the younger man on the shoulder and said, “Okay, Christmas hugs, I can get behind those. Very nice. However,” he added, gently pushing his partner away from him, “I think it could be improved with you being less hungover. Coffee. You need it, I need it. Mutual benefits here.”

He moved to pull the rest of the way away, but Steve stopped him.

“Danny…thank you for coming home…”

Not what he _really_ wanted to say, but it was close enough.

Danny shrugged and gave him a careless grin and drawled, “Yeah, well, I don’t trust you to not get my kids into trouble if left alone with you for too long. You’re a bad influence, McGarrett, and you _know_ it,” he jabbed at him, turning and pulling the coffee from the cabinet and starting the drip.

Steve stepped into the kitchen, getting closer behind him, and then softly said, “I, uh…I missed you.”

“That’s nice. I missed you, too, babe,” Danny absently replied as he dug out the sugar, milk, and butter. He let out a sudden sound of surprise, however, when Steve pinned him against the counter and turned him so that they were chest to chest.

“No, Danny. I _really_ missed you…”

At this, the older detective’s eyebrow shot up in comprehension. Oh. _Oh._ Before Danny could start running off at the mouth, however, Steve leaned in and pressed his lips to his, hoping against hope that he wasn’t ruining the only good thing that he had ever had in his life.

Danny was still…too still. Steve inwardly cringed. Oh, god. Bad idea.

He started to pull back, but the next thing he knew Danny’s strong hand was on the back of his neck, pulling him in for a much deeper kiss than before, opening his mouth to him, and Steve let out a hungry sound as his partner’s tongue slid in next to his and sank into it, his hips sliding into place against the shorter man’s perfectly as he let his mouth be plundered.

Oh, yeah. Better than he expected. _Way_ better than he expected.

After a long time, they came up for air and Danny gasped out, “Please tell me you’re plenty sober to know what you’re doing and that I’m not just taking shameless advantage of you here because I’m sleep deprived and not thinking clearly, because if that’s the case, I’ll just leave and come back later, and we can act like this never happened and--”

“Danny.”

“Yeah?”

“Shut up.”

He pressed another kiss to his lips, and this time Danny was the one to let out a soft sigh and growl. They kissed for what felt like a small eternity, and only pulled back when they heard a cough in the doorway. Steve pulled back like he’d been shot, and stared in absolute terror at seeing Grace standing between the kitchen and the living room, a small smirk on her face.

“Took you two long enough,” was all she said, before turning around and heading into the living room for her presents.

They reluctantly pulled back from each other, neither of them quite able to look the other one in the eye. After a few awkward seconds, Steve spoke up and said, “You, uh…you got a smart girl, there,” and Danny nodded, still not looking at him. The younger man then added, “I’ll, uh…take that coffee now.”

Directly on cue, the coffee maker went off. Danny used it as an excuse to turn away from him and pour him a mug, even putting in some butter for him, and then turned back around and handed it to Steve.

“Thanks.”

Danny nodded.

Another awkward silence, and finally the Jersey cop broke it with, “Look. I’m not gonna back away from this, whatever _this_ is,” he gestured between the two of them with one broad hand. “I love you too much to not try and make this work, so you’re just gonna have to deal with it, and deal with my kids, and don’t think for one minute that you’re gonna be the fun uncle all the time, babe. There’s gonna be discipline and rules and delivering consequences and--”

Steve got into his face.

“You done?”

“No, I am _not_ done, I am only getting started, mister,” he said, jabbing a finger into his chest. “You already take years off my life every single time you drive, so now I have the distinct feeling that this relationship is going to take even _more_ years off my life, so I better just retire now while I still can.”

Steve smiled.

“Love you, too, Danny.”

He rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, sure you do,” he muttered, acting offended, even as a smile snuck onto his lips.

Steve grinned. Looked like it wasn’t going to be a blue Christmas after all.

 

 


End file.
